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Having sold over 490,000 copies in it's first week, X Factor winner James Arthur's debut single 'Impossible' became the fastest selling song of the year. Has the Teeside troubadour peaked too early or will he be able to hold off the competition to capture the coveted Christmas number 1 spot?

According to odds provided by William Hill, Arthur's keenest competitor comes in the shape of the Justice Collective and their cover of The Hollies 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother'. All the proceeds from the Justice Collective's sales go towards paying the legal bills of those who have campaigned for justice for the 96 Liverpool supporters who died in the Hillsborough disaster and they've gathered together a start studded line up made up predominantly of artists with roots in the North West.

With William Hill quoting odds of 9/2 on James Arthur clinging on to the number 1 spot, other competitors include Alistair Griffin at 8/1, The Choir (Military Wives) at 20/1 and, coming flying out of left field (or East London) with his catchy sales patter £1 Fish Man at 33/1.

HMV's Gennaro Castaldo said: "The Christmas charts have become a little less predictable since Rage Against The Machine denied the X Factor another sure-fire Christmas number one a couple of years back, so anything now seems possible."